It has been a very big year for our family! I don’t think I can say it was bigger than 2021, because that was YUGE and life altering! Maybe 2021 changed our lives, and 2022 was our first year playing that out and finding out what it meant. So it felt absolutely just as huge. We were healthier, but busier!! Shall we discuss the highlights?
We shall.
January was VERY busy with SICKNESS. Man alive. The three little boys got covid, so with the quarantine rules, everyone had to stay home. For pretty much the entire month. It was unreal. Normally, we would’ve just all jumped in and got sick together, but with Brady still in the thick of chemo with next to no immune system, we worked hard to keep it contained! Masking in the house lost its charm really quickly, but we lived! January also kicked off advertising for Telemiracle, which was a completely hilarious whirlwind, as we had NO idea we would essentially be the face of the campaign this year. The highlight of the month was closing it off with a big winter fire in the backyard with mom and Cher. It was SUCH a beautiful event and really nice to finally see our people!
February held a lot in terms of emotion, but not a lot for events. I will admit most of that was on me. I struggled hard in February. ALL the memories of Brady going into MRIs, surgery and rehab. It was all back, and my body knew it. There is a lot of trauma there, so the month was hard. That being said, Brady and I got to go out for our 13th anniversary, which was a treat! I got to attend a physio appointment back at City Hospital. One of our last. Rowan had his blood drawn, which was a BIG first, and he was a total CHAMP! The bloodwork also marked the beginning of us getting him some medical attention in hopes of making his life a little easier 💜 Still on that train, but I’m glad it started. Brady cut off his beautiful long hair, and Rowan also celebrated his seventh birthday!! It was a really full month.
March had some fun in it 🙂 We joined the Telemiracle telethon via zoom, which was kind of exciting! The kids really enjoyed the hype of Telemiracle, and felt like celebrities, thanks to their teachers and friends at school. It was fun. We also had our one and only band gig in March, which was REALLY fun and REALLY well attended! It was a total win. Man I miss our band. Lastly, Spring started to show its face this month, and we started going for walks and dressing down a little. The Batec got a lot of good use starting in March!
April was a pretty significant month for a lot of reasons! I began seeing my counsellor. Rowan got a concussion. We marked the one year anniversary of Brady being home from the hospital. Another stretch of emotional whirlwinds, even though that was a good thing. Brady finished his YEAR of chemotherapy in April, and we celebrated by getting covid a second time! 🥳 The four of us who didn’t get it in January got it in March. So be it. Lol!
May is when it got exciting! Camp opened!!! Brady and I were gifted the first weekend up at the camper just for ourselves. We had such a nice time! The kids joined the week after, and got in some good outside time. We finished building the awning above our deck, which was absolutely the right choice! May was the month where Brady locked down his new job at Zaks, and he began part time work for the first time since his surgery. His schedule really couldn’t have been more perfect than it was this summer. We wrapped the month off by celebrating Solly’s sixth birthday!!!
June was the month where the kids were still in school but we all were really ready for summer. We got so much closer to the Dahlsjos already in June, and soaked in some lake time with our loved ones. Meanwhile, school activities continued, and the kids had the best track and field day ever! I spent the month fighting a malware attack on the blog, which sucked, but was eventually resolved, thanks to a helpful friend, and a tech savvy husband. And an expensive program that I bought to protect me every day, lol! Finally school was out, and summer could fully begin!!
Julyyyyy! July held sooooo many fun things! It kicked off with Wavy’s fourth birthday, teetered on Cher’s birthday, and wrapped up on mine! Brady was able to paddle board and get on the water for the first time since his injury! I was not the only person crying on the beach, believe you me! The kids also got braver in the water. Solomon was the biggest improvement in that area, getting on the kayaks and paddle boards! Dekker went to camp on his own, for a WEEK! That was a huge milestone for him, and he LOVED it! July was also when I discovered mosaic crochet, which has become a very real love of mine since. And speaking of love, we even got to see some family, who came from far and wide to spend lake time with us! It was an awesome month!
August was also a huge month! The three middles went to camp for three nights, which was REALLY fun for them, and REALLY fun for us! We soaked up those days with the Dahlsjos as a group of seven rather than our usual thirteen! It was so fun! Wavy had her first ever sleepover that week, with Sadie 💜 Rowan had his drowning scare in August, and unfortunately, was a bit afraid of the water after that point. Meanwhile, our littlest littles got SO BRAVE on the paddle boards! I never would’ve thought I’d see them stand on them so young! Especially Wavy! She paddled herself around like a boss! We celebrated both my moms birthday and Dekker’s eleventh birthday as well. And we spent goooood times with the Dahlsjos. Gaga ball was the name of the game the kids would ALL play together! Lastly, Brady had a beautifully clear MRI. Praise God!
September, the whole tone changed, but thats to be expected. School started. Playschool started. Full time work started. But fall camping remained! We went back to Kinasao, as well as hit up Tom and Rae’s camp spot! We managed to lock down a work vehicle for Brady this month, which felt like it took forever, and was such a relief! Cher and I went to see the Anne of Green Gables ballet for our friendaversary, which was a TOTAL treat!!! We wrapped the month up with Laela’s ninth birthday!
October began with our final days at camp! We were fortunate enough to spend that last stretch with our dear Dahlsjos 💜 The whole place was packed up in the beautiful fall weather, with a fire crackling the entire time. It was so beautiful. Once we were settled into the fall routine at home, we were able to get hand controls for the minivan! Brady was elated to finally have HIS van. We celebrated his birthday mid month, and celebrated Halloween at the end! It was pretty cute.
November unfortunately was another month of sickness for us. Not covid, thank goodness, but some fevers and colds that seemed to cycle more than they really needed to. We got through, however, and by the grace of God, both Brady and I stayed healthy!!! November held the first real snow, among a few other real tastes of winter. We decorated for Christmas, broke a bunch of glass on our vehicles (ugh) and got to see our dear Dahlsjos for an early Christmas/Jaxon’s birthday date. What I feel was the most significant thing about November, however, was Solomon’s newfound love for letters! All of a sudden, he really cares about letters, reading, writing, etc. Some may feel he’s late to the game, and thats ok 🙂 This month, Solly sounded out words successfully for the first time ever, and it was SO exciting!! He has since been writing out his alphabet, practicing letter sounds, and asking how to spell things. He copies the titles of books he likes, just to practice how to write the words. It is a wonderful sight to behold, and I am SO thrilled!
December was also really big. What month wasn’t crazy busy in its own way? We managed to get the side window repaired on the bus just in time for Christmas holidays! Brady and I got contacts. Dekker experienced being stage crew for the first time ever, and ran the spotlight for the school Christmas play. He was incredibly proud. Waverly also did her first Christmas play, which she rocked with a consistent foot stomp, singing the words, and doing the sign language. I loved it! The COOLEST thing about December was making some real headway in Rowan’s health, and he can FINALLY be his sweet, soft, squishy, loving, expressive, artistic, deep-thinking, charming, excellent little self. Thank you LORD!!! Christmas came and went beautifully, with Brady home for the entire week in between. What a blessing.
This year was not gentle, but I am incredibly grateful for every day of it that we had. I fell hard for this particular song by Kings Kaleidoscope called Joy. It says “Every moment I play back, You live in it. I can feel every way that You’ve been in it.” And that about sums it up. God’s hand has undeniably been in every piece of our life, every single day. It has been a year of hard work, overcoming, listening closely to God, and even making some unpopular choices. But we feel God’s hand in absolutely ALL of it, and we praise Him for keeping our heads above water.
We have high hopes for 2023. There is more beauty to come, and our faith has not been shaken. We trust you, Lord! Do Your thing! We’re here for it!! 💜